Proto's account
by Aria6
Summary: A sequel to my earlier yaoi fic... told from Proto's perspective, set in the time of X. A great deal has happened! Please, if you like it, let me know! ^_^
1. Default Chapter

I was sunning myself, on nice, warm rocks. A thing always associated with my most pleasant memories... memories of Bass, and the final time we had been together. His goodbye to me, I knew now.  
  
I sighed, and stretched out, spreading my arms wide. I liked the way my red armor seemed to soak up the heat. Summer was a wonderful time of year for us, a time of work and play.  
  
A loud crack rang out, as if the others had sensed my last thought. There was laughter and groans, a sure sign Quick had hit another home run. A small smile crossed my face. If he ever wanted to leave us, I was sure he could make a wonderful living in a Reploid baseball team. Elec wasn't a bad pitcher, and I myself have been told I'm superb, but even we couldn't keep down his batting average.  
  
I reflected on them for a moment. They were all Reploids now. For such a long time, they'd been my only company, and I'd gotten drearily familiar with the fact that robots are very one dimensional things, with only limited emotions and imagination. When X, my brother, finally emerged, I paid attention. And when I found that they were mass producing his design, I found a way to upgrade the Robot Masters, while preserving their memories.  
  
I had asked their opinions first, of course. Limited or not, they'd had some free will after Wily died, and had deserved the right to choose. But the eight who had come with me had decided unanimously that they wanted to, as Quick had put it, "Be real." To know the joys and pains of real life...  
  
And I'd suddenly found myself with a bunch of Reploid brats on my hands. I wondered what problems the humans were having, with their assembly lines. Each one had needed attention, sometimes affection, sometimes just an ear to speak to. Fortunately, after a little while, they'd looked to each other as well as me. I wondered, though, how the humans dealt with their Reploids needs.  
  
Now I was very pleased with my group, though. Two of them, Clown and Ice, had both decided to leave us. I had erased their memories of our exact location, which they had agreed to, to keep us safe. The ones I had with me now were Quick, Elec, Shadow, Fire, and Snakeman.  
  
If you are paying attention, you've probably noticed that added up to only seven, not eight. Something went wrong with Metalman. I still don't know what, but the Reploid mind had destabilized, and I had to shut him down. A paranoid schizoprenic Reploid is a frightening thing.  
  
The others had grown into their current personalities. Quick was an eternal jokester, sometimes rather trying, but always cheerful and trying to cheer up anyone down. But he just didn't know when to quit, sometimes, and managed to get into fights more often than anyone besides Fire. Even I could find it annoying.  
  
Fire... he had lived up to his name. His Reploid personality had come out with a fiery temper, flaring quickly and just as quickly dying away. But the flare ups were predictable enough, if you knew what bothered him, and the only one he regularly fought with was Quick, who couldn't resist prodding. But neither of them could carry a grudge, and the same night they would be laughing together again. Fire wasn't the most intelligent of my friends, but he did have a knack for knowing what to do in a crisis.  
  
Elec was simply the best. I felt more relaxed just knowing he was with the others, knowing that if Fire and Quick started to fight, or worse, Shadow and Quick, he'd know how to diffuse it. The polar opposite of Shadow, he was golden haired, blue eyed, with the most confident, capable and sunny personality I'd ever met. He reminded me a little of Mega, but with more of a knack for leading. He had just the right words to soothe arguments, scold, and inspire. He was also the only one who could stop Shadow in his tracks... but not surprising, they were lovers.  
  
I sometimes wondered at Elec's choice, and wondered if he might regret it. Shadow was brooding, closed off, with a demeanor full of ice. His sense of humor was very morbid, and he rarely smiled at his own jokes, even when everyone else cracked up at a particularly gruesome, but funny image. If we'd had some kind a yearbook, like humans make, I would have voted him "Most Likely to End up in Prison for Life." But I just didn't know him as well as Elec, so I tried to reserve judgement. I'd been called brooding myself, and Bass had certainly looked like no catch, objectively. And Elec could tease a rare, shy smile out of Shadow, that could suddenly make the grim youth look handsome and charming.  
  
Snake was perhaps the oddest of them all. A dreamer, childlike, an eternal optimist and bookworm. He was also terribly gullible, not a good flaw in any group, let alone this one. Quick often tricked him badly, and he would just run away and hide when that happened. Like the odd child out, he could be picked on by the others. But his talents made me almost envious. I could draw, but not well. Snake excelled at drawing, often doing requests for the others, and his singing wasn't bad either.  
  
The sun suddenly dimmed, and I shifted with a sigh. A cloud must have-  
  
"He's solar powered, I tell you! No doubt about it!" I scowled, cracking open an eye to look up at Quick's face, his startling, purple hair, brown eyes, and constant grin. He was blocking my light.  
  
"Why are you getting in the way of my recharging, then?" I asked lazily, and Elec smiled, pulling Quick back enough that I had my sunshine again.  
  
"Did Snake come this way?" Elec asked, running a hand through his thick blond hair. Shadow was behind his shoulder, living up to his name as Elec's shadow. "Someone here needs to apologize." Quick lost his grin, looking uncomfortable.  
  
"Jeez! What's with everyone, can't take a joke..." I shook my head, pushing myself to my feet. I should probably handle this.  
  
"No, but I can take care of it." I straightened my scarf. Unlike my friends, I was in my full armor. They rarely wore theirs, these days, although they always had their summoners on them. The one time I had caught Quick without his, I had immediately given him a rundown on the disadvantages of having no armor or weapons. Not liking pain, he'd immediately gotten the idea. The others hadn't needed reminding.  
  
I looked around for a little while, and found Snake's tracks. He'd come by behind me, a fair ways, but he still must have been fairly silent for me not to hear. I followed the tracks silently.  
  
There was a soft sobbing up ahead, and I sighed to myself, pausing to regard Snake for a moment.  
  
His soft brown hair was long these days, reaching halfway down his back, and I'd had to change his helmet to accomodate it. He was hugging himself, sitting at the base of a tree, his soft green eyes filled with tears. I wondered what Quick had done this time.  
  
Snake was as much of a problem, though. He had never learned not to take everything Quick said seriously...  
  
"Snake..." I knelt down beside him, and he started, looking up wide eyed.  
  
"Oh! ...Blues... it's... it's okay..." He wiped off his eyes hurriedly, and I reached out to touch his hand.  
  
"I'm sure it is. But you can tell me about it anyway." I said softly, squeezing his hand.  
  
The story was pretty much what I'd expected. Snake had tried to slide in to home, but had muffled it up and been tapped out. Quick had made a smart aleck comment... anyone else would have laughed, or growled at him. But Snake took it too personally, and when he'd looked depressed, Quick had tried to cheer him up.  
  
That had only made things worse, and Snake had fled crying. Quick just didn't understand how sensitive he was... and Snake didn't understand that not everything was meant as an insult, even if it sounded that way.  
  
But I wasn't going to change who they were, so I just listened to Snake, being a sympathetic ear for his sorrows. To my own surprise, I'd found that all of them except for Shadow always wanted to speak to me this way. I seemed to be a good listener, although I'd never really thought about it before.  
  
Snake finally wound down, and I gently patted him on the back.  
  
"Quick doesn't mean to be hurtful, Snake." I said softly, gently tugging his hand. "Why don't you come back to play the game some more? Elec and Quick were looking for you." Snake looked up at me, eyes mournful... but trusting. He trusted me, almost idolized me, and it made me nervous. I was afraid I knew some of the thoughts that were going through his mind, and I never wanted to disappoint him, but it wouldn't happen. Not with me.  
  
"Okay." He went back with me, and this time, I decided I would play in the game myself.  
  
It would be entertaining, especially if they let me be pitcher. 


	2. Paaarty!

A new chapter, although only one person reviewed... *sniff... sniff* But that's okay... You all just suck! ^_^ Joking. Well, sort of joking. Pwwwwease review? Thanks!  
  
  
  
I stirred the algae vat, making a face at the smell. But it appeared to be working well, and I left the job to the machines monitoring it.  
  
The algae vats were important. With them, we could produce a tofu-like, basic foodstuff that Quick had affectionately named "kibble." The name had caught on quickly. In an unadultered state, it was rancid stuff, with an awful aftertaste. But after several treatments, it gained an almost creamy consistency and a nutty flavor. It went into almost everything, which might have been monotonous, but when it was cooked well with spices and vegetables from the garden, it was pretty good.  
  
In summer, we had an outdoor garden, growing all the vegetables and common spices. I carefully checked the hydroponic garden, and the sun lamps. In summer, we used it to grow the more exotic, difficult spices and things that wouldn't thrive in northern Canada.  
  
I saw a bowl sitting on one of the tables, and walked over, curious to see what someone had left behind. I smiled to myself as I saw strawberries, cut into slices and sugared. We had spent several hours going to a "pick and pay" strawberry farm, and everyone had had fun. Now the strawberries were everywhere, a large part frozen or turned into jam, the rest being eaten quickly. I absently popped one into my mouth before going back to my inspection.  
  
Everything seemed to be working well, the plants were all healthy. Although I usually left that to Fire, he had a green thumb, oddly enough. Shadow was forbidden to fiddle with the plants. We all agreed he had some kind of death touch. He'd been so proud.  
  
I crushed a sprig of mint, enjoying the scent of it. It-  
  
"There he is!"  
  
"Get him!" I started, turning around... and ended up being seized by several Robot Masters. Elec and Quick easily hoisted me up, since I wasn't struggling... exactly...  
  
"What the hell are you guys... hey...!" I protested as they dragged me out. What could they be doing?  
  
"Road trip!" My eyes widened, and I groaned. I should have guessed. They were both dressed in "hip" clothes, Elec in a black Harley jacket, and faded blue jeans. Quick was wearing something more his style... a bright orange, silk tank top and creamy dress slacks. It was interesting, with his purple hair.  
  
"I don't have my clothes, you dips!" I wiggled as we arrived at the vehicle hanger... and they set me down, still grinning.  
  
"We already put them in the car." Snake chimed in, and I glanced over at the last three. Snake was dressed all in green, dark green dress pants, and a lighter green, formal shirt. A woven gold choker added an odd touch, and emphasised his lovely green eyes. He'd let his long brown hair fall loose. It was an attractive combination of formality and informality.  
  
Fire was wearing a red tank top, the same shade as his firey hair, and blue jeans. He was standing against the van, arms crossed, obviously waiting for everyone to calm down so we could get the show on the road.  
  
Of everyone, though, I thought Shadow's costume was the most impressive. He was wearing a jet black leather jacket, that had been carefully painted on the back with roses. Black roses, their petals outlined by shimmering silver, black on black. Tiny silver crosses hung from the jacket, pierced into the leather. He wore the jacket open, and underneath was a tight black shirt, and another silver cross dangling from a heavy chain around his neck. His black hair was wild, his grey eyes like chips of ice. He looked dangerous, and very attractive.  
  
"You want me to change in front of all of you?" I growled, adjusting my scarf, and the boys hooted, except for Snake. He looked at me with shining eyes and a shy smile. Yes, I was worried about that boy.  
  
"As if you have anything we haven't seen before!" Fire said with a laugh, and Quick grinned.  
  
"Yeah, we've all seen you in the hot pools." He giggled, a disconcerting sound, and I raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Have you then?" I shook my head, but got into the hovervan. "Well, come on you perverts. Let's go hit the town." Laughter rose as they piled into the van...  
  
The trip took only a few hours. The van had a teleporter strong enough to take the whole thing, and all of us, to a few preset locations. Then we drove in from a safe distance. Snake and I did the driving, since Elec and Shadow had no licences, and while Quick and Fire DID have licences, they also had a disturbing habit of trying to find out what speed the van could reach.  
  
I yawned, curling up in the back. I was wearing a worn, black leather jacket and slightly tattered jeans. I looked a bit ratty, to tell the truth, but I had never cared very much. I could leave the displays to Snake and Shadow.  
  
Fairly soon, I was asleep...  
  
hr  
  
I"Bass..." I looked down on the tattered body, thrown carelessly into a recycling bin, and knew there was nothing I could do.  
  
The cold, clinical part of me noted how Wily had carefully removed most of his neural net, then taken out important components in his chest. Everything of value had been taken. Everything that was Bass.  
  
The not so cold part of me wanted to scream, to break something, to... kill. But I had already killed.  
  
But I had already killed. Blood dripped down my armor, pooling in places. My scarf was sodden with it, and tiny droplets dripped off, hitting the ground with little pings.  
  
I'd never thought I had it in me to break the first rule like that. But I had, and it made me realize I'd wanted to all along. There was a kind of peace in knowing I was bound only by the rules I made, not the programming hardwired into my mind.  
  
The Robot Masters were afraid and confused, as much as they could be. Treble was curled around the tube holding the new robot... the red one. He looked nothing like Bass... but whatever was left was there. Not in this crumpled, broken body in front of me.  
  
But I couldn't stop crying at the sight... the hot tears almost burned, as they slid down my cheeks...  
  
A hand tugged gently on my arm, and I turned slightly to look into Metal Man's confused face. They hadn't been told what to do if Wily died.  
  
"...Blues? What now?" I blinked, the question penetrating the haze of grief, pain and rage I'd wrapped myself in.  
  
What now?  
  
"I'm not sure... let me think..." /I 


	3. Party Crashers

I woke up when the hover car stopped.  
  
We couldn't be there yet. Did they want me to take over the driving? Elec and Shadow were both asleep near me, curled together tightly. Shadow's chin was resting in Elec's golden hair, and they both looked peaceful and content. It made me feel just a bit envious, but I brushed that away and crawled to the door.  
  
"Unh, Blues, don't-" Quick started lamely, and I shot him a puzzled look as I opened the back door to step out.  
  
"Why, what's going... on?!?" I was face to face with... "Unh, sorry officer." A police officer was standing right in front of me, giving me a slightly peculiar look. I suddenly had an unpleasant feeling I knew what was going on. "...Speeding ticket?"  
  
"Yes, sir." He said politely, glancing past me at Quick, who had poked his head out with an embarrassed grin. I shook my head.  
  
"Great." I'd thought Snake knew better than that... but when we walked to the front...  
  
"Fire! What are you doing driving? I revoked your driving privileges for a reason." I demanded as soon as I saw the Reploid in the drivers seat. He looked sullen, and Snake, sitting beside him, seemed mortified.  
  
"I still have a license-" He started to protest, but I cut him off.  
  
"If the legal system is too stupid to take it away, I don't care, but you won't drive MY car. How fast were you going this time? And get out your license for the officer." He looked even more sullen, but did as I said.  
  
"It wasn't that fast..." I shook my head as he passed over his registration to the police officer.  
  
Things were sorted out quickly, and we had a fairly substantial ticket. Still...  
  
"Could be worse. You're slowing down a bit from last time. Now, into the back." I jerked a thumb at Fire, who sighed and bailed out, letting me have the seat. Snake smiled at me brightly, obviously pleased I would be sitting beside him for a while. I almost sighed to myself. That was the kind of attention that I didn't need.  
  
There was a muffled protest from the back, and Elec pulled aside the divider a bit to stick his head up front. He looked rumpled and tired, his hair mussed and sticking up in all directions.  
  
"What's going on?" He asked with a yawn, and I heard another protest from the back. "I'll be back in a second, Shadow."  
  
"Nothing much. Fire just picked us up a speeding ticket. Go back to sleep." I said with a smile. There was no point in disturbing the happy couple over it. Elec blinked, then yawned.  
  
"Oh, okay." He closed the divider, going back to his love. There was one last sound, far more content than the first two, and I couldn't help but smile. Those two were rather sweet.  
  
Snake did fall asleep before too long... driving was rather dull. I'd never admit it, but I could see why Fire tried to liven things up with speeding. It was such a long, flat road, rare in Ontario. Even major roads could be twisty as snakes in some areas around here.  
  
But we finally reached where we were heading. It was easy enough to find a parking spot... Monday evening was never the greatest time of business for the nightclubs. It was all the same to us, though. Monday was just another day. The thought made me smile slightly. In many ways, we were very free...  
  
"Yay! We're here!" Quick was first out the back, followed a bit more sedately by Fire. "Let's go kick some ass!"  
  
"No starting fights." I said automatically, and everyone laughed. Snake slid out with a small yawn, and Shadow and Elec were soon out, Elec combing his hair. Shadow didn't bother.  
  
The bouncer watcher nervously as we sauntered up. Probably not used to Reploids, and to the practiced eye, we were easily recognizable as Reploids. There's a sort of knack to it, a hundred tiny clues that can be used to identify the more human Reploids. I, of course, was the exception...  
  
"What's the cover charge?" I asked, getting out the money.  
  
"Ten bucks." I lifted an eyebrow. For the clubs around here, that was a bit steep... but I shrugged and payed it. There was no point in looking for a new club to save a few bucks.  
  
Once we were inside, I realized why the charge was so high. There was a very good band playing, one of the local favorites, and I did rather like them. The others scattered to play, and I just picked up a drink, staying in the shadows and listening to the band.  
  
Also listening and observing the people around me. It was amazing, what you could learn at places like this...  
  
As the night went by, though, I didn't learn a great deal. I did notic Elec dancing with a wide variety of ladies... he liked to dance... and Shadow watching, grim faced and silent. He never liked it when Elec paid attention to other people, especially women... but there wasn't much choice if Elec wanted to dance. I smirked slightly. Unless we were in a very special bar, where men dancing was fine... Well, it didn't matter. Elec would have him purring contentedly before the night was over.  
  
I spotted Fire and Quick sitting and talking, and slid up behind them to listen.  
  
"Man! Did Blues do this on purpose, or is it just a lingering effect of Wily's programming?" Fire complained, and I blinked, listening harder.  
  
"What?" Quick said indistinctly, eating some beer nuts. Fire waved towards Shadow and Elec, in a general sort of way.  
  
"Us! I mean, yeah, all we have to be with is guys... but Shadow and Snake are SO gay they'd never touch a girl, Blues wouldn't touch anyone after Bass, and Elec is totally gone on Shadow. Are the only ones not gay here you and me?" Fire complained.  
  
I watched in amusement as Quick stopped eating his beer nuts with wide eyes, glancing at Fire, and Fire finally looked at him... and Quick grinned brightly at him. The message was unmistakable.  
  
"Stay the hell away from me." Fire said, edging away, and Quick sighed.  
  
"I'm unloved..." I laughed to myself, abandoning them to circulate in the crowd. I even danced a few times... dancing was fun. Bass and I had even done it, a few times, although we had usually ended up cracking up at the silliness of it.  
  
I eventually washed up near Elec and Shadow, and listened to them curiously. Elec seemed worried, running a hand through his golden hair, and Shadow was grimmer than I'd seen him in a long time. Something was causing a small problem between them.  
  
"Love, please, don't act like this." Elec said softly, touching Shadow's arm, running his fingers down the leather. Shadow looked away, tense as a wire. "We were only dancing, love."  
  
"You kissed her…" Shadow finally growled, and Elec shook his head.  
  
"She kissed me, and it was only a peck on the cheek. Shadow, please, don't act like this. I love you." Elec was completely sincere, and it showed, as he reached up to touch Shadow's cheek. "Don't push me away." Shadow finally looked at him, his expression turning hurt, pained.  
  
"I… I just… I know you like girls better." Shadow caught Elec's hand, squeezing tightly. "What if you find someone you…" He couldn't go on, but Elec knew exactly what he meant.  
  
"The only one I care for is you, Shadow. I just like to dance." Elec pulled Shadow close, wrapping his arms around Shadow's slender, muscular waist, and soon his arms slid around Elec's shoulders. Elec suddenly smiled at Shadow, full of mischief. "Would you give me the next dance?"  
  
"What, here? In front of everyone?" Shadow was caught off guard. I lifted an eyebrow. This wasn't the kind of club where men danced with men, unless they wanted to attract a lot of stares, comments and possibly worse. I wouldn't call the stares and comments homophobia, although some people would… it's just that there's appropriate places for that sort of thing, and this isn't it.  
  
"Yes. Who cares what they think? We're Reploids anyway. And I love you dearly, Shadow." Elec nuzzled his cheek, and Shadow slowly smiled. His rare smiles did make him look wonderful…  
  
"I love you too." And they kissed deeply. I suddenly felt like I was intruding… an odd sensation for me, I was a veteran eavesdropper, and generally had no shame… so I turned away.  
  
I frowned, tilting my head. I was hearing a strange sound…  
  
I was caught completely by surprise, though, as the club was shaken by an explosion. Suddenly, the humans around me were panicking, as the side of the club was blown inwards. I activated my flash case without really thinking about it, summoning my armor.  
  
Just in time. And ugly Maverick ducked through the doorway, and I aimed and fired in one smooth move.  
  
"Die human- ARRRGH!" He obviously hadn't been expecting plasma in the face, and a Thunder Bolt in the chest. His scream died off as one of Shadow's shurikens took him in the throat. I shot a glance at the two. Elec looked vaguely shocked, but was reacting well, and Shadow was ready to fight, grim and angry. There were flashes in the crowd, as the other three activated their armor a split second later.  
  
But three more Mavericks followed a second later, and they were not too happy about the state of their comrade.  
  
"Elec, Snake! Get these people out of here! The rest of you, on me!" Snake was the weakest fighter, Elec the steadiest. They could evacuate the humans while the rest of us cleaned up the trash.  
  
Reploids were more advanced than the original Robot Masters… but only in AI. X had been built with the same sort of power levels as Mega Man, really, although his buster had a new power source and a fancy new name. Zero's beam sabre was an invention of Wily's, also contemporary with our weaponry. And war technology hadn't significantly improved over the thirty years X had been in the capsule… if anything, it had degraded a bit over time.  
  
Most Reploids weren't a match for us, in other words. Not when the Robot Masters had Reploid minds to compliment their well made bodies...  
  
Quick and Fire exploded into action simultaneously. A Fire Storm took the lead Maverick in the face, downing him, and Quick Boomerang's sailed after the other two. Quick himself followed, lashing out with his fists in a blur of speed.  
  
The Mavericks were hardly defenseless, though. I weaved and bobbed out of the way of some homing missiles… a few screams behind me told me Snake and Elec hadn't gotten all the humans out, but I really couldn't take shots for them… and I returned the fire. A shuriken whizzed by my shoulder, almost brushing me, but I ignored it without effort... Shadow tended to come close in practice, but he hadn't hit a friend yet.  
  
Still, these were lesser Mavericks, shock troopers. We finished them off fairly quickly... then heard an explosion behind us?  
  
I whirled, eyes seeking... the building was collapsing. I wasn't certain why. I might give the impression that I always knew what was going on, but in battle, things often became confusing. But I caught on to what was happening before the others, and grabbed Shadow's arm.  
  
"Get out! The building is collapsing!" We dodged the debris, leaping through the hole the Mavericks had created. I didn't see Quick and Fire, and felt a stab of worry, but there was nothing I could do but save myself and assume they were safe.  
  
"...Damn!" There were Mavericks running around everywhere. I could only imagine the difficulty Elec and Snake were having, trying to keep the humans from the nightclub safe. They were probably failing.  
  
"This way." Shadow urged me, and we broke into a run, trying to find shelter and our friends. I was unhappily aware that we were probably becoming more seperated from each other with every moment. Using our communicators now would be a bad idea, though.  
  
I could only hope they were all right... 


End file.
